Quinn signs super PAC campaign finance law

SPRINGFIELD — Gov. Pat Quinn signed a bill Friday that lifts the state’s campaign contribution limits to candidates once big money starts flowing into a state or local political contest, a move one watchdog group decried as effectively ending limits in any major race.

The measure is a response to a court decision that threw out parts of the Illinois campaign finance law imposed in the wake of the heavy-handed fund-raising tactics of Democrat Rod Blagojevich, the impeached former governor now serving 14 years for corruption in federal prison. A federal judge ruled political action committees that act independently of a candidate are not bound by Illinois’ campaign contribution limits.

The new law, which took effect immediately, allows contribution limits to be removed in a race once an outside group spends $100,000 on behalf of a candidate for the legislature or local government. The trigger for statewide races is $250,000.

Quinn spokeswoman Annie Thompson said the law is necessary to keep the playing field as level as possible in the wake of rulings in theU.S. Supreme Courtand in federal court in Chicago that have opened the doors for major spending by so-called super PACs. “Essentially the rules changed,” Thompson said, “and this is a short-term solution to ensure fairness while we work on a more long-term fix.”

During debate, House Majority Leader Barbara Flynn Currie, D-Chicago, compared the proposal she sponsored to a state law that removes limits when a candidate dips heavily into personal and family funds to infuse money his political funds.

“If there are super PAC, independent PAC expenditures for a particular candidate, then campaign contribution limits would not apply to any candidate in the race,” Currie said in May.

On Friday, the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform contended the law provides a road map for any candidate that wishes to evade the limits. They could urge a group to pour major donations in on behalf of either side, and both sides would see the limits removed, said David Morrison, the group’s deputy director.

“With this law, I’m confident there will not be limits in a governor’s race,” Morrison said.The legal challenge that led to the change was brought by the abortion rights group Personal PAC. U.S. District Judge Marvin Aspen ruled the organization could create its own independent-expenditure PAC and take unlimited contributions.

Aspen found previous rulings by theU.S. Supreme Courtand the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago “prohibit governments from enforcing limiting contributions to independent-expenditure-only PACs.”

Illinois' first-ever campaign donation limitation law placed a ceiling of $10,000 on individual contributions; $20,000 on corporate, labor or political party donations; and $50,000 from a PAC or a candidate's campaign bankroll.

The law also prohibited groups from having more than one political action committee.

Personal PAC successfully argued that prevented it from forming an independent-expenditure PAC, which cannot consult or work with a political candidate. Such PACs also are allowed to accept unlimited donations.